Marketing Essentials Part 6: Getting Exposure

So far in our Marketing Essentials series, we’ve covered discovering your brand, creating a marketing message, your web presence and business card strategies.

But none of these marketing essentials will help you earn clients unless you have this final element — exposure.

Exposure is key to growing your business. The more people that know about your services or products, the more chances you have to make a sale.

Strangely enough, though, too many people still think that by just launching a business they will get clients. They invest their time, money, and energy, and then throw open the figurative doors. Unfortunately though, if people don’t know about the business there is no way they’ll be able to buy anything.

You need to make your small business visible. You’re the one who has to spread the word.

And even if you have the best store location in the world, you still need to show people that you exist. Why? Because when people travel, they look straight ahead at where they’re going. Unless your business is smack in the middle of their path or unless they turn their head to look, they won’t notice you. Period.

So what can you do?

Getting Exposure

Getting exposure and visibility for your business doesn’t have to be difficult. In fact, if you’ve got your other marketing essentials handled this part can be quite easy. Here are a few different types of exposure and how they can help you:

Advertising
Advertising is great. You can put an ad in the local paper or pin a flyer to a bulletin board. Drop business cards at locations offering related (but not competing) services. Fliers and pamphlets work well too, when they’re well designed and used properly. If you’re interested, here are some free and effective ways to advertise.

Word of Mouth
If you’re on a tight budget and can’t afford advertising, use free marketing: word of mouth. Tell everyone you meet about your new business. Offer them a business card. You can even go the extra mile and give first-time clients a discount or a free sample.

Collaboration
Other businesses can help give you exposure, too. Team up. Collaborate with a related business in a joint venture arrangement. By providing an extra service or pairing up products, both businesses benefit through additional exposure and client sharing.

Volunteer
Here’s another way to gain exposure: Volunteer your services. Plenty of organizations need the extra hand, and your presence keeps your business in the forefront of people’s minds. There’s a greater chance they’ll remember and contact you when they need what you sell.

Host a Seminar
Your time is invaluable, so use it where you can. Host a seminar or workshop to teach people something new and gain their trust or help them try out a product you own. You can make a lot of money from a well planned speech.

Make a Donation
If there is a fundraising activity in your area, offer a donation for a prize – most fundraisers provide free advertising in return for your sponsorship. You can donate money as well. Many groups need funding, and a donation puts you on their good side. Local newspapers may pick up the story, and you can write a press release to boost the chance of that happening.

Use Promo Products
Another way to leverage giving something away is investing in promotional products. Low-cost printing lets you give away nice t-shirts with a catchy marketing message or a handy mug for morning coffees. People love free gifts, and your business gains exposure.

Getting Exposure on the Web

For online exposure, find forums where you can post up a blurb about your business. Create a forum signature that teases people too, and get active in discussions. Have a catchy email signature for communication. Each time people see your business name, they’re more likely to remember your business when they need it.

There are other ways to gain exposure for your small business online. List your business in directories. Email marketing campaigns work well also. Add search-engine optimization to your website to help gain traffic, and submit expert-information keyword content to article directories.

Leverage blogs (and have one for your business). The marketing opportunity using blogging is vast, and you can literally comment your way to a good client base. Find blogs that your target market likes to read and make yourself a regular presence in discussions.

There are thousands of ways to gain exposure for your business. All you need to do is apply some thought and creativity. Think outside the box and connect with customers using different methods than those they have become accustomed to seeing. If you need some more inspiration, check out these 35 other ways to get noticed.

Don’t Forget to Measure

Always measure the impact of your exposure tactics, no matter how you choose to market your business. You may find that a newspaper ad works more than an email campaign or that blog commenting gives a better return on your time investment than passing out pamphlets.

One thing is for sure, though: You do need to put in the time and effort to gain exposure for your business, and it will take work. If you sit back and wait for people to notice you by themselves, you may end up never being noticed at all.

So, which tactics have worked best for your business?

p.s. — the final marketing essentials post will be next week, don’t forget to subscribe and check it out!